World news briefs  compiled May 30

Friday

May 30, 2014 at 11:00 AM

CANADA

Boy found imprisoned in bedroom

A malnourished 10-year-old boy was found living in squalor in a locked bedroom at an Ontario home, where authorities allege he’d been held for up to two years by his aunt and uncle, police said Friday. The boy was fed twice a day with fast food, was left alone for long stretches each day, did not attend school and spoke limited English, authorities said. Police were alerted to the boy by the Children Aid’s Society, which received a tip from the public, London Police Detective Kevin Heslop said. The boy was taken to a hospital Thursday and was diagnosed as being underweight and suffering from malnutrition.

VENEZUELA

President praises Obama’s stance

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said passage of legislation to impose sanctions on officials could cause his country to shut down its diplomatic missions in the United States, but he praised the Obama administration’s opposition to the bill and said it has led him to name a new top diplomat in Washington. Maduro said Thursday that the measure, which has cleared the House of Representatives but faces a challenge in the Senate, could “lead to the point of not having an embassy or consulates in the United States.” “That’s an extreme point that I want to avoid,” he added during a televised event. “I want the best relations with the government of the United States, based on respect and permanent communications.”

FRANCE

TV feeds limited for D-Day events

Millions of viewers worldwide could miss live coverage of the commemorations marking the 70th anniversary of D-Day next week because the French president’s office reversed a decision to grant international news agencies free access to the broadcast. The administration of Francois Hollande has handed two French broadcast networks exclusive rights to the main international ceremony, and they are now imposing sports-style syndication fees on global news agencies, satellite and cable news channels, and online news outlets. The French networks are providing coverage free to European state broadcasters, who belong to the 100-member European Broadcasting Union consortium.

SYRIA

Thousands flee ahead of election

Thousands of people have fled government-held Syrian cities after opposition fighters warned they will attack during next week’s presidential election to disrupt the vote, opposition activists said Friday. The Syrian government presents the June 3 polls, in which President Bashar Assad is widely expected to secure a third seven-year term, as a means to end the 3-year-old conflict that has killed more than 160,000 people. The Syrian opposition and its Western allies have denounced the vote as a farce aimed solely at lending Assad a veneer of electoral legitimacy.

Compiled from wire reports.

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